I will be turning a quarter of a century old a few months from now. Before I slip into the inescapable abyss of the constant, self-torturous need to justify my life choices and question my life’s purpose, I think there’s no better way to savor the last few months of my “early twenties” than by making a list of 25 things I know to be true.

Now two years into motherhood and looking back at all the things I’ve done, I can’t help but be proud of myself.

Despite my lack of experience, maturity, and even maternal instincts, I was able to survive the first overwhelming year of motherhood and now still continue to kick motherhood in the ass! (My toddler would probably disagree; it’s he who kicks me in the ass most days now. haha)

And while I’m not done yet, probably never will be done, with motherhood, I’ve sure picked up a couple of lessons along my journey.

Like most new mamas, I was also pretty damn stressed about planning my kid’s first birthday in Cebu.

But with a bit of research and with the help of my ever-supportive family and friends, we managed to throw a simple yet memorable celebration to mark the occasion.

And because it’s that time of the year again for planning parties (can’t believe my kid’s turning two in a few days), I thought it would be great to offer some advice for parents who are planning their tyke’s first birthday in Cebu. I’m no party planning expert but I’m pretty sure you could use these tips to throw a simple, meaningful, and most importantly frugal first birthday celebration for your tiny tot.

I’m a bit under the weather today. My cold has gotten worse and has most probably turned into a sinus infection, judging from the results of my Google search. (And if WebMD were to be believed, I might be dying as my untreated sinusitis could “lead to meningitis, a brain abscess, or an infection of the bone.”) But I know that my suffering now doesn’t even compare to everything else that’s been happening to the world.

November just began but a series of unfortunate events has already unfolded.

Since I started writing for a living, the proper use of grammar has always been one of my best weapons in creating content for clients. My seniors, Grammar Girl, and the holy grail of online content writing, the ever-reliable Copyblogger have instilled in me the value of creating clear, concise, and compelling content when writing for the web.

That’s why after over four years of content writing, it has always baffled me why so many popular blogs today have such awful grammar.

At 1 year and 10 months old, I know you will never understand or care about the strange national mourning over Brangelina’s divorce, much less know how to say their name right. (Right now, dinosaurs and the alphabet are what’s keeping you busy.) But I think their relationship is a great source material for real talk or also known as “inspiring nuggets of wisdom your mom will share, which you will probably not understand now but will surely thank me for later.”

So what can we learn from the breakup of these two beautiful strangers?

Part of the reason I wanted to start my own blog was to give my son and future descendants a glimpse of me as a person – in case, you know, I don’t survive the zombie apocalypse or contract the deadly flu, and thus, be unable to teach my posterity the rules to living a good life.

Such morbid thoughts and a movie marathon of Korean films have led me to create a blog series dedicated to my son, which I shall call “Letters to My Little Lion.”

Five years, two months, and eight days (…and counting) – that’s how long my partner and I have been together. Yet in those years, you’ll only find a handful of proof about our relationship on Facebook.

There are three kinds of phone users today: people who are eager to get their hands on the new iPhone; folks who swear by their Android smartphones; and finally, people who call and text with their basic, dumb phones.

They say your priorities change once you become a parent. Truer words have never been spoken – especially when it comes to eating out.

Back in the old, pre-baby days, my Partner-in-Crime (PiC) and I used to go on this thing called “dates”. We would watch a movie or maybe stroll around, and then dine at whatever restaurant was nearest or whatever we craved that time.

Five years later, with a little bundle of joy and mischief in tow, our dining habits have changed – to say the least.

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Who’s writing this stuff?

Based in Cebu, Philippines, Ion is a content writer by day and a protective mama to her cub most of the time. When not writing, you can find her in bed wrestling her nearly-terrible-two kid to sleep. Like a lion, Ion is feisty when hungry. But she doesn’t bite, she swears!

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